Rockstar Will Replace Some of the Soundtrack in Grand Theft Auto IV

Grand Theft Auto IV is coming up on its 10th anniversary this month, and while the acclaimed open-world game is looked fondly on by many for reinventing many of the mechanics that the Grand Theft Auto series made its name on, some aspects of the game are about to change, namely the music.

Speaking with Kotaku UK, Rockstar Games stated that the studio is removing some of the music from Grand Theft Auto IV due to several licenses for music expiring for the game. Specifically, Rockstar said that “we are required to remove certain songs from the in-game soundtrack of Grand Theft Auto IV and its Episodes,” and specified that the Vladivostok FM Russian radio station would be one of the areas where the most songs would be removed.

However, the studio also stated that while the company will have to remove many songs from the soundtrack due to their licenses expiring, the studio will be “replacing some of those songs with a new set of songs on that station,” though didn’t specify a timeframe of when that might happen and which ones.

Given that the majority of the GTA IV soundtrack is licensed music this isn’t too surprising of a situation (and has happened previously with other GTA games), but for those looking to jump back into the game in celebration of its upcoming anniversary, it will be interesting to hear some new music alongside the classic open-world game.